Fading sounds of tribal rhythms

Bhangra from the north and Kolaveri-type songs from the south have successfully transcended barriers of language to reach every nook and corner of the country.

| TNN | Sep 14, 2012, 07:13 IST

RANCHI: Bhangra from the north and Kolaveri-type songs from the south have successfully transcended barriers of language to reach every nook and corner of the country. However, tribal music from states like Jharkhand has failed to garner any significant audience despite their evident potential. Music lovers across the world believe that folk music is captivating and often readily accepted by connoisseurs, so what has stopped Nagpuri from breaking the shackles and remaining confined to a small section of the society?

Musicians believe that although traditional instruments and tribal music have long been neglected even by the locals - who mostly prefer modern instruments with more refined and technologically-enhanced tones - the rich sounds of folk instruments have a charm that cannot be replicated. "One cannot expect the melody of 'tuhila' from modern-day synthesizers," said Madhu Mansuri, a leading tribal recitalists and a pioneer in fusion music. He said modern music revolves around public demand and are short-lived and shallow.

Among tribal musical instruments, the 'mandar' and 'dhol' have remained popular with the common folk because of their availability, potential to replace other percussion instruments and easy handling. Complicated instruments like 'tuhila' - basically a pumpkin gourd attached to wooden handle with a silk string - or Saranga, made of wood and goat-skin with strings made of hair from a horse's tail, are outdated and on the brink of extinction. In fact, a musician named Kali Charan of Tatisilwai village, 10km from Ranchi is believed to be the last person who can play the saranga and the tuhila. Apart from the dhol and mandar, several other percussion instruments are gradually vanishing because very few people are adept at making them.

Anil Sikdar, a Nagpuri filmmaker and a renowned theatre personality, said that advent of metal and plastic drums have hindered the growth of traditional instruments like nagara, dumang and dhanpla. "The process of making a dumang or dhanpla involves use of wooden base and the skin of a buffalo or a monkey to give it the perfect sound. Once hunting was banned, making these instruments became difficult. Not many took it up as a profession as there were no buyers to offer the price for their efforts," he said. He added that they adopted a mix-and-match of instruments to give modern flavour to tribal music.

Meanwhile, rutu (bamboo flute) and murli (small flute) have been extensively used in Jharkhand and proponent Mukund Nayak also took it to foreign countries. Having anchored Indian tribal festivals abroad several times, he said it is important that the instrument is preserved. Nayak, however, admitted that music and musical instruments can only be kept alive if they are in popular use and are appreciated by listeners. "We cannot force the audience to like something. Unless master trainers can find perfect disciples, it will be difficult to preserve the culture," he says.

Yet another tribal wind instrument, Narsingha, can be occasionally spotted during the tribal fairs like Mudma mela or during Sarhul and Karma celebrations. Now having a place in music museums, the instrument is used as a bugle to announce the opening of a ceremony of an event. Narsingha is often used as a mark of tribal culture instead of accompanying dance or songs.

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